ProPublica Report: Justice Clarence Thomas Failed to Disclose Luxury Trips

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Facts

  • US Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas failed to disclose decades of luxury trips gifted by Republican megadonor Harlan Crow, according to a new ProPublica report published on Thursday.1
  • Over the years, the trips have included international island-hopping, superyacht excursions, private jet travel, and yearly retreats to a luxury resort. Just one of those trips alone, a nine-day stint in Indonesia, is estimated to have been worth more than $500K.1
  • Thomas, a conservative judge serving in the highest US court, did not list any of the trips in his annual financial disclosures. Federal disclosure legislation, however, requires justices and other officials to report such gifts.2
  • Senate Democrats are calling for an investigation into the trips. Senate Judiciary Committee Chair Dick Durbin, a Democrat, has said his panel 'will act,' and that 'the highest court in the land shouldn't have the lowest ethical standards.'3
  • Thomas has not commented or responded to a list of questions submitted by ProPublica. Crow said in a statement that he and his wife never sought to influence Justice Thomas on any legal or political issue and that the trips are part of the hospitality they extend to all their friends.4

Sources: 1ProPublica, 2Al Jazeera, 3Reuters and 4The hill.

Narratives

  • Democratic narrative, as provided by Washington post. The revelations of this ProPublica report are truly shocking. Thomas's lifestyle was being subsidized by Crow with luxury trips that ordinary Americans can barely conceive of. Thomas has significantly corroded public trust by not disclosing these trips, as required by law. Democrats must act to restore this trust and ensure that this type of major ethical transgression doesn't happen again.
  • Republican narrative, as provided by Washington examiner. Thomas made a mistake by not reporting the trips he was taking with his long-time family friend, but it's not the major sin that the Left is making it out to be. It was simply a mistake. Thomas can amend his financial reports and we can all move on. The purpose of the financial disclosure law is to inform the public about possible conflicts of interest — in this case, there are no conflicts of interest, as there have not been any cases before the Supreme Court by Crow or his firm since Thomas joined.

Predictions